# China Cabinet Conversion into Humidor (work in progress)



## Lorglath

Well, I love the look of Aristocrats so I decided to make a poor man's Aristocrat and convert a China Cabinet into a humidor... I just ordered the Spanish Cedar for it today, so it won't be done for some time, but I got a head start today so I figured I'd share.

The outside


















Doors open


















Top of the left side









Bottom of the left side









It comes with lights that I will be replacing with LED's as they create less heat to run, I can install them on each shelve level, and they are AWESOME









Hole for the lights that still needs to be sealed up









Initial placement of Clear finishing, low smell caulk









What it looks like when wiped and still wet









I sealed all of the openings on the inside aside from the glass as I feel it has a descent seal already, however if it fails to maintain humidity, that is the next step to seal, but I feel it is a wast right now. After I was done sealing the inside and wiping away the excess and pushing it down into the cracks I moved to the outside... back mostly.









Don't forget the little cracks in the wood!









And along the bottom.









Like I said this is a work in progress, and I will take more photos as this comes along... when I finish I might link it all into one post for easy reference later on. Any questions / comments / concerns?


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## Opusfxd

This is going to be very cool to watch! Nice start. :tu


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## awsmith4

Good Luck

I can't wait to see the results


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## JordanWexler

cool project, i was thinking of doing something similar on a smaller scale, curious to see how it works out!


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## mikeandshellie2

Great progress, can't wait to see the finished product.


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## SmokinApe

Nice!


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## smokeyscotch

Looking good. Look forward to watching this. :tu


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## bobarian

A nice piece of furniture that will look even better filled with cigars! Keep us updated on your progress. :tu


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## groogs

That looks like a great project, I can't wait to see how it turns out.


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## shilala

Congrats on your project. 
I can't wait to see how it works out.


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## SouthsideCigar

That looks like an awesome project. That will fit a ton of smokes.
What are you going to do for humidification?

Dave


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## sailchaser

project are always great to watch come alive,have fun look foward to see the end results


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## Lorglath

SouthsideCigar said:


> That looks like an awesome project. That will fit a ton of smokes.
> What are you going to do for humidification?
> 
> Dave


Haven't put too much thought into it... I was thinking beads and oust fans.. but I might make a more active system.


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## rack04

Lorglath said:


> Haven't put too much thought into it... I was thinking beads and oust fans.. but I might make a more active system.


I would guess you'd be better off with active humidification in that beast. Hydra is a good one to look at.


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## Jay Hemingway-cl

this is exactly what i want to do at my place.
i am searching for an nice oversized china closet so i can convert it myself into a humi.
i seen one done amazingly from a fellow at FOH. it is my inspiration.
this is a perfect cabinet to make into a humi. plus it will look great anywhere in the house!
good luck and please post pic's as you update it.
:tu


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## pcozad1

Yes yes lots of pictures please, How air tight do you want this ?


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## Lorglath

pcozad1 said:


> Yes yes lots of pictures please, How air tight do you want this ?


I finally got the wood in and started working on it so more pics will be up soon, I want it pretty darn air tight as I want it to keep the humidification for a while without dinking around too much with it.

-Matt


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## pro2625

Wow that is going to be awesome! I wonder how many smokes will fit in that monster


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## Lorglath

Here are some posts of me preparing the Spanish Cedar for placing into the Humi....

Seeing which edge was straighter to straighten with the table saw...









Sawing the boards parallel









Notice the pusher for safety and the goggles









Next step is jointing the edges for a smooth gluing surface









Take a few passes with a very thin setting to ensure you don't lose too much wood and it doesn't gouge the wood









Use Wood Glue to join them together









Measure to ensure the pieces are large enough









Use clamps... make sure to use a piece of wood as a buffer if using metal clamps









I set some weight on top to ensure that it doesn't pop up in the middle or bow...









Another view of the clamps...









I have been gluing 2 boards a day... at this rate I should be able to do some boards at the next step and keep gluing to get this project done in a hurry!!!

The reason it has taken so long to this point is that I closed on a new house on the 30th of June and spent my time fixing it up to move in ready condition so I could get out of my old place... Hope you all enjoy these and I will try to post the next update within a few days when some more progress is made! I am enjoying your comments so far so keep em up!!

-Matt


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## Savor the Stick

*:tuAwesome Idea!!!

This is a project I really want to see at the end.

Keep us updated

Thanks,

STS:ss:ss:ss
*


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## phiphika1453

Nice work so far. Are you going to angle the shelves like you would see in a B&M or just lay the shelves flat?


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## Cozy

Nice work.:tu Are you going to have the bottom humidified or will that be storage? Here is a link to the humidifier I have in mine.

http://stores.cigarsolutions.com/Categories.bok?category=Avallo+Accumonitors


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## Blind_Io

Very nice project, I'm envious of your shop!

It will certainly be interesting to watch this one come together.


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## pcozad1

great . keep the pics comming. Pat:ss


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## Lorglath

phiphika1453 said:


> Nice work so far. Are you going to angle the shelves like you would see in a B&M or just lay the shelves flat?


I am going to have them lay flat however I can get risers for certain boxes if I wish. I am simply making a shelf that will replace where the original glass was in the cabinet.



Cozy said:


> Nice work.:tu Are you going to have the bottom humidified or will that be storage? Here is a link to the humidifier I have in mine.
> 
> http://stores.cigarsolutions.com/Categories.bok?category=Avallo+Accumonitors


Thanks for the link. The bottom of the thing is going to be for storage of cigar related accessories, such as some desktop humidors, ash trays, matches... all sorts of crazy stuff...

I am still debating on what I am going to do as far as letting the active humidification take care of the fans vs. setting them up myself with a PIC micro controller. We shall see how much time and effort it takes! Thanks for all the great comments!


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## elderboy02

Nice! This is going to be great! :tu


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## benjamin

very, very thorough. definitely looking forward to the end result!


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## King Leonidas

You are quite the master of the wood.


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## Lorglath

King Leonidas said:


> You are quite the master of the wood.


Many years of practice.... oh and I just started wood working... :tu


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## DonnieW

Awesome project bro. I've built several myself for friends and relatives, though I' not in the business even remotely. I truly believe the best looking cabs are those designed (or retrofitted) around china cabinets or curios. I built my personal cab from a project in Fine Woodworking, it was meant to be a curio or gun display cab.

I REALLY dig that old school belt-drive saw. I can't wait to see the final product.

P.S. The sides of the cab are likely already wood glued together, I think you could lose the unappealing caulk. If anything its the glass that would leak - for which I highly recommend ditching the caustic caulk for some fish tank sealer, which is food safe and totally cigar friendly.

P.S.P.S. I would also consider slanting the shelves, it totally changes the look of the unit and really drives home the intent of the unit - displaying cigars/boxes. Its easy to do after the fact, just thought I'd mention it.


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## Lorglath

King Leonidas said:


> You are quite the master of the wood.





DonnieW said:


> Awesome project bro. I've built several myself for friends and relatives, though I' not in the business even remotely. I truly believe the best looking cabs are those designed (or retrofitted) around china cabinets or curios. I built my personal cab from a project in Fine Woodworking, it was meant to be a curio or gun display cab.
> 
> I REALLY dig that old school belt-drive saw. I can't wait to see the final product.
> 
> P.S. The sides of the cab are likely already wood glued together, I think you could lose the unappealing caulk. If anything its the glass that would leak - for which I highly recommend ditching the caustic caulk for some fish tank sealer, which is food safe and totally cigar friendly.
> 
> P.S.P.S. I would also consider slanting the shelves, it totally changes the look of the unit and really drives home the intent of the unit - displaying cigars/boxes. Its easy to do after the fact, just thought I'd mention it.


Hehe thanks for the comment on the saw... it was my grandfathers... it works! I wish I knew about the fish tank sealer, that would have been great... oh by the way the caulk dried clear, is not noticable, and you cannot smell it... Also I placed some wood shavings from my jointer into the empty cabinet to get a nice smell a cookin inside of it, I will post a pic when I put up the next update when I am finally installing some pieces.

As for the shelves, I am plannin on doing flat for my design of fans to create circulation... I will build some slanted inserts to slant certain sticks, or even a row, but I guess I didn't think too much about that in the begining.


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## texasbadbob

Where did you get the cabinet? It looks really cool and will look even better when finished. How many boxes do you think it will hold?


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## DonnieW

A lot of folks ask about where to buy spanish cedar, where did you source yours?


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## Lorglath

texasbadbob said:


> Where did you get the cabinet? It looks really cool and will look even better when finished. How many boxes do you think it will hold?


Craigslist, and I have no idea, over 1000 cigars I know that...



DonnieW said:


> A lot of folks ask about where to buy spanish cedar, where did you source yours?


http://www.bristolvalley.com/catalog.asp?prodid=293407&showprevnext=1
Cheapest wood I could find, and they charged me actual shipping... well I am assuming so, it was reasonable.

Now for the next set of pics....

Notice on the background of the humi there is a line going down the middle... I was originally going to butt the wood up to that and have a section going down the middle, but I decided it would look nicer, and be easier to raise the wood off of the back and simply make it one sheet across. I was at first debating what to make the risers on the sides out of but went with scrap Spanish Cedar as anything else would impede the integrity of the cabinet.









Sizing the bottom pieces in









After sanding the wood it got really dusty and hard to clean, so I took some distilled water and wiped off the boards before I glued them in... idn't it purdy?

















Then I placed the top part of the cabinet on the ground so I could glue in the back walls, making sure to support the edges.









The scraps I used to secure the sides of the backboard









First piece in, with weights upon it









Gluin'









Had to find a lot of random heavy things sitting around the garage as i had 3 sections to weigh down for each of the 4 boards









The next day it started lookin nice! Take a look at that grain!









There will still be some visible other wood (the back brace) when finished, I might choose to cover this, but probably won't care that much when everything else is done, you will notice in the next few pictures what I am referring to.









I tried to pair the wood up for the back wall so that the paterns complimented one another. This happened to occur because of the place in which I got the wood as mentioned above


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## Lorglath

The look with the shelves in place









Image from inside looking down the length... notice, I wasn't able to completely sand out the glue marks









More of the back brace









I also wanted to secure some brackets for the front corners of each shelve as they currently had no support as it was designed for glass... When making these little brackets I tried to hammer right into them and this is what happened....









So make sure to drill small pilot holes in thin pieces of wood









Also, as I was hammering it in I realized I was putting a lot of stress onto the glass from the pounding so I got an air finishing nailer to afix these pieces to the cabinet


















Once installed...









Now supporting weight









I am also adding an edge to the front of the shelves so I can hide my wire and LED lighting, I like the way this turned out


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## Lorglath

Once finished, this is how they look...









Notice the cuts in the areas where the supporting brackets are









Final step of the night, glue the bottom board to the cabinet


















If I had to do it again I would have scuffed the wood first as it didn't seem to want to stick to great to the finished surface...









More with the make-shift weights... notice the jenga game I was playing with myself on the right...









That is all for tonight! Keep up the comments, but please don't quote the pics in your quotes as this post is large enough without doubling or tripling the picture count.


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## IndyRob

This looks cool but I'm curious how you're planning to battle wood movement? Seasoned, isn't that cedar going to expand like crazy?


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## ucla695

That's going to make one sweet humidor! Thanks for keeping us updated. I can't wait to see the final product. :tu


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## Lorglath

IndyRob said:


> This looks cool but I'm curious how you're planning to battle wood movement? Seasoned, isn't that cedar going to expand like crazy?


I could be mistaken, but the point of using spanish cedar is that it holds moisture without molding, or warping. Thats why all humidors have tight fits, the wood has little movement from dry to wet.


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## Moro

This is such a bloody gorgeus humidor!!! Can't wait for the finished product!


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## sikk50

Looking awesome!


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## ca21455

Great project! That is going to be really nice!


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## groogs

That is looking good. I can't wait to see it finished and full of cigars.:tu


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## pro2625

Wow that thing is going to hold a ton of sticks....very nice:tu


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## njschloss

Looks awesome so far Matt! I can't wait to store some stuff in there. I'm definitely renting out some space next time I place a big order!

-Nick


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## JerseyStepUp

wow i'm very impressed.. i see things like this for sale at garage sales all the time... to bad im not really that skillful of a woodworker (at all)


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## gene

This is a nice idea. I've also seen boxes that were originally silverware set boxes converted into humidors, but this is so much more and has a lot more possibilities available. My immagination has been stimulated by this project... Good luck!:tu


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## replicant_argent

Looks awesome Matt!! Can't wait to see it in person someday!


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## Darrell

Lorglath said:


> I was playing with myself on the right...


I'm feeling generous, so I'm going to leave that alone.


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## Lorglath

Darrell said:


> I'm feeling generous, so I'm going to leave that alone.


Ha, thanks


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## the nub

Looking good!

I may have missed it, but are you planning to cut ventilation slots in the shelves? If not, you will have humidity stratifiction even with active humidification. Even with slots you may still encounter this problem unless you have design air chambers to each level.


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## Lorglath

the nub said:


> Looking good!
> 
> I may have missed it, but are you planning to cut ventilation slots in the shelves? If not, you will have humidity stratifiction even with active humidification. Even with slots you may still encounter this problem unless you have design air chambers to each level.


I have active fans rather than slots in the shelves... I like the design I came up with, I think it should work alright... I will post another post once I get some LED's and some Fans in place... the finishing touches are always the hardest part to get accomplished... but I really wanna use this thing so hopefully it will be done soon!


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## ronhoffman2

Looking prety good so far. keep up the good work.


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## SHOE

It's looking great. I would like to do a project like that myself one of these days. I can't wait to see it finished and stocked. Whatever you do, keep posting those progress pics. 
___________________________________________________________

I would like to add this for those planning to do a project like this in the future. I have read that Spanish Cedar produces a very fine carcinogenic dust when cut and sanded. It would best to take all necessary safety precautions when using it. I think you would have to be around a lot of it (not sure), but just in case I think a mask, gloves, and proper ventilation would be advisable. Just my :2.


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## O-Danger

That looks awsome. Very inspiring :tu. I am looking forward to pics of the finishing process


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## Lorglath

*UPDATE:*

So... I finally added the fans to the shelves, I am not doing slits as I will just keep the fans on at all times on a low setting to make sure there is proper ventilation. Also I will not be tilting the shelves.... I may tilt a tray with some super premiums in it, but not all the boxes for storage ext. as it would decrease the amount of space. I have come up with my plan for my electronics in the humidor and this is how it is going to go...

I will have two circuits. One will be running my LED lighting system, and the others will be for humidity control... This is my description of both:

*System 1:* I have 3 pressure switches in my possession that will be added to the tops of the doors so when any door opens all of the lights in the humi will turn on. Not only this, but I will have a 4th 'master' switch in parallel as well that will be able to leave the lights on when the doors are closed. I will be running many white LED's throughout the shelving, hence why I made the little 1" overhang on the fronts. I am probably going to use a potentiometer (Essentially a dial) inside the case to control the brightness of the LEDs.

*System 2:* Get ready to cream.... I have been thinking this through for a while and I am getting close to my final concept, and am starting to program this soon (this weekend maybe). This system will be controlled by a PIC micro controller and will give me temperature, humidity, and control the fans.

Fan / Humidity system: I am going to make my own active humidification system. I will set a box of distilled water, or propylene glycol solution in the bottom shelf of the cabinet with fans on either side, so when the humidity sensor on the top of the case sees that it is getting to dry, it turns on the fans to this box, and all of the fans in the case to 'high'. This will cause the fans blowing across the top of the water or solution in the box to pick up humidity forcing it throughout the case. When the humidity sensor gets to its ideal point, it turns the box fans off, and the 6 in the case to a low setting.

One may be asking 'what is the ideal setting and how is it chosen?' I am going to have another potentiometer or dial, to set an ideal humidity, which will be displayed in a green 2 digit 7 segment display on the top of the middle door, the actual humidity will be displayed in blue right next to it. Finally I will be displaying the temperature in a set of red 7 segment LEDs as well.

When all said and done I will have an automated system for controlling the humidity that I set, it will tell me the temp, and have a kick ass lighting system.

Any questions?


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## Jay Hemingway-cl

More pic's!!!! More pic's!!! More pic's!!!!!


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## GrtndpwrflOZ

Jay Hemingway said:


> More pic's!!!! More pic's!!! More pic's!!!!!


:tpd::tpd::tpd::tpd::tpd::tpd::tpd:


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## sikk50

:tpd:
:tpd::tpd:
:tpd::tpd::tpd:
:tpd:
:tpd:


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## DonnieW




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## Lorglath

I will try and get some up today... but most of this is hardware / software design that I am in the process of! Give me some time to work!!! ;P


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## Lorglath

Sorry I haven't had a chance to update recently, The programming part of this project is turning out to be a beast! I could just go with a pre-made active humidification system, but I'd rather design my own... I will post more PICs when the lights go in.


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## Lorglath

Hey all!!! Exciting news! Stage 1 is complete!!! This time I don't have any pictures ;/ Instead I uploaded some videos onto you-tube doing some demonstrations!!!! Check this shit out!

Vid 1 - Demonstration - Showing the lights 
Vid 2 - Small explination - Small video on the wiring


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## Lorglath

Lorglath said:


> Hey all!!! Exciting news! Stage 1 is complete!!! This time I don't have any pictures ;/ Instead I uploaded some videos onto you-tube doing some demonstrations!!!! Check this shit out!
> 
> Vid 1 - Demonstration - Showing the lights
> Vid 2 - Small explination - Small video on the wiring


Comments, good or bad, are appreciated


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## parafumar

Lorglath said:


> Comments, good or bad, are appreciated


Project looks nice - looking at the pushbottons, etc looks like you made a trip to RadioShack. The momentary / automatically on setup for the lights with the option for 'constant on' looks like a well done idea. Sounds as if you have a good plan to circulate the air in the humi.

How are you planning the finish to cover the wiring along the back (the visible part)? Looks like some 1/4 round, slightly routed would blend in nicely, but whatever you come up with, looks nice!

Helluva project.


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## Lorglath

Is there a way to display the video on the forum and have it hosted at youtube? I am un-sure if people are clicking on the links


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## Lorglath

people only look at pics? Fine, I will post more when I can take some in a few days.


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## Lorglath

More Pics....



















Some of the cigars I smoked during construction









Don't forget to check out the youtube vids


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## kayaker

Looks good. What do you have left to do?


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## Lorglath

designing my own active humidification system


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## Prospector

Quite the project - impressive. Did you do anything special to seal the doors? I don't imagine those cabinets seal particularly well on their own.


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## gary106334

Excellent job man. Nice video also. :tu

Yes I watched it.


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## Lorglath

gary106334 said:


> Excellent job man. Nice video also. :tu
> 
> Yes I watched it.


Thanks for the comments I love comments!!! The doors don't seal excellently, and I am adding lots of water to my active humidification system, however I am working on fixing the seals, just haven't found the proper product yet.


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## NickD2008

Great Cabinet. I just started mine and was wondering where you got the pressure switches and LED lights?


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## WaxingMoon

Excellent! Can't wait to see it finished. Looks like a well thought out project!


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## CrashTECH

I checked out the videos... I'd like to see a sketch of how you have everything wired together and maybe some specifics on the specific components you used.

As for sealing the doors... would something like this work?

w w w . greatergoods . com/store/energy-savers/insulation/foam-weatherstripping-tape/prod_364 . html

or maybe this?

w w w. pplmotorhomes . com/parts/caulks-sealants/42200 . htm

The second one is thinner and might work better for you as it won't necessarily prevent your pressure switch from not engaging.

Either case both will help keep it from "slamming" closed I bet.


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## CrashTECH

(Had to split up the links to post them... I think a 30 post limit on link posting is a tad high... but w/e)


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## KINGLISH

WOW! Very nice job!!


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## edogg

Very nice job man. Cant wait to see it with some cigs in it


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## Lorglath

wow... all of a sudden there is interest in this again! I will take some more pics and answer the questions hopefully tomorrow.


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## Cigar Man Andy

Great project and great thread. MORE PIX please.


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## SmoknTaz

Lorglath said:


> wow... all of a sudden there is interest in this again! I will take some more pics and answer the questions hopefully tomorrow.


What we all really want to see is the p0rN! Great project, awesome work! :thumb:


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## mrsmitty

Resurrecting a old thread b/c I'm planning on doing this myself.

I've been looking at china cabinets on craigslist for awhile. I'm not the best at woodworking but like anything If I apply myself to it I'll master it.

Where'd you get your Spanish cedar at? And did you cut slots in the shelves so there could be some air flow?

I thought about making shelves similar to this.

Spanish Cedar Wood Circulation Grate for your Cigar Humidor

I think it would make it easier instead of routing out all the slots.

This is one of the cabinets I'm looking at.

China Cabinet


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## Bleedingme

How's the china cabinet holding up? Get it all filled up yet?

I'm curious because I'm planning a furniture/humidor conversion shortly!


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## Lorglath

So, it has been 1.5 years from when I said I would post more pics... I think you all have been patient enough. Please forgive my collection, it is decent for my budget, but not up to par with those that fill up their aristocrats top to bottom with boxes... here it is with closeups viewing the humidor like a book... Please forgive any spelling errors on cigar mfg names.










Top Left: what's left of some best sellers, and some random Fuentes in a box.









Top Center: a bunch of Padilla 1932 Toros and a couple of Opus X "A" coffins









Lop Left: some Original Release Anjeo 46 some GOF and a few Opus Lancero's in coffin









Upper Middle Left: a few boxes who's names are not to be mentioned...









Upper Middle Middle: Some "Jonny O" custom sticks aging in a CAO Vision box









Upper Middle Right: more unmentionables... along with some more Padilla 32's and CAO MX2s standing upright









Lower Middle Left: Random Opus and Padron Aniversario followed by some Arganese









Lower Middle Middle: my best of the best... some Gurkha triple infused with Louix the 13th... some Davidoff, 5 ESG, a Don Pepin Blue Label shaped like a pipe, an oldie from the 70's, a BBMF and a Chili Pepper









Lower Middle Right:
some Illusions and some random things i cannot find a better place for









Lower Left: Some old cigars (Roi-Tans) from the 1920's to the 1940's and some Tat Gran Cojonu, some Tat Face, a few Tat Blacks and some RC184s









Lower Center: Hoyo de Monterrey 135th year anniversary, and behind it are 10 Hoyo's still in a factory press









Lower Right: Cigar Oasis XL


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## smelvis

Damn nice job, very organized must be nice to have it all it one place easily at hand.


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## Bleedingme

Awesome! Still looks very nice and seems like it has been holding up nicely.


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## Lorglath

thanks, yeah, it's doing alright


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## Stubby

Hey there brother! Looks really great. Instead of building a large humidor from scratch, I may be looking to craigslist for a retrofit. Not as large as what you did, maybe something to hold around 400 sticks.


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## APBTMarcel

Old thread is old, but wanted to give you props. I did watch your videos and really appreciate them as well as the pictures. I'm in the process now and luckily my grandfather is helping me because he is amazing with wood working. You did an incredible job.


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